Taylor Morrison Breaks Ground On 55+ Community In Wiregrass Ranch

The Esplanade at Wiregrass Ranch, which broke ground last month, will be an over-55 community with more than 800 total homes, as homebuilder Taylor Morrison continues to expand in Wesley Chapel.

Homebuilder Taylor Morrison’s Esplanade series — which provides “resort lifestyle experiences” for its residents — has already proven to be popular in a number of Tampa Bay locations.

A new development planned for Wiregrass Ranch could take that popularity to another level.

Last month, Taylor Morrison broke ground on Esplanade at Wiregrass Ranch, which will feature more than 850 single-family and detached villa homes and will be Wesley Chapel’s first 55-and-over community since Williamsburg was originally built as an age-restricted community in the 1970s.

The new community will be located in the heart of the Wiregrass Ranch DRI, between State Roads 54 and 56 and east of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. Esplanade at Wiregrass Ranch will be adjacent to the under-construction Wiregrass Ranch Blvd., which will run north and south from S.R. 56 to S.R. 54.

Originally, the project was called Valencia under a different builder, but when that fell through last year, Taylor Morrison was approached and jumped at the chance to take over the development.

“The location and the size of it were two of the things attractive about this opportunity,” said Doug Miller, Division President of Taylor Morrison’s operations in Tampa. “To have this lifestyle community in Wesley Chapel is really attractive for us. There are a lot of things to do there, there’s a hospital, shopping and entertainment. It really made this location key for us.”

Phase One, which was approved for construction in May, will have 169 single-family, attached homes.

Scott Himelhoch, vice president of land acquisition for Taylor Morrison, unveiled many of the plans and amenities for Esplanade at Wiregrass Ranch at a North Tampa Bay Chamber Economic Development Briefing at Hunter’s Green Country Club on Aug. 29.

With construction under way, the 55-over community hopes to hold a grand opening of its amenity center sometime late in the first quarter or early in the second quarter of 2020. That was good news for some of the Realtors in attendance at Hunter’s Green, who said they are in need of more product to sell to eager buyers. 

Taylor Morrison’s Esplanade offerings generally offer features like tile roofs and lush landscaping as standard features. Because it will be building in an area that has ample greenspace, walking paths and nature will be incorporated into the layout.

Although the community will be mostly restricted to residents 55-and-over (80 percent must fall in that category, with the other 20 percent required to be 45-and-over), Taylor Morrison will be building homes ranging in size from 1,700-3,500 square feet, recognizing that not every older family wants to downsize and that many still want to be the central hub for holiday and family gatherings.

Taylor Morrison has Esplanade communities either built or in the process of building out in New Tampa (350 homes just south of the Hillsborough-Pasco county line and west of Grand Hampton) and Starkey Ranch (500 homes) in Odessa.

The Wiregrass Ranch community, however, is expected to be the crown jewel of the Esplanades in the Tampa market.

Himelhoch touted many of the offerings that will make Esplanade at Wiregrass Ranch a popular pick for homebuyers.

Because Esplanades seek to give residents a boutique resort living experience, a full-time lifestyle manager is on staff in every community, operating as part-cruise director, part-concierge.

The lifestyle manager helps create wellness programs and social events. A loaded calendar offers things like dinner dances, concerts, clubs, groups and football watch parties.

The concierge service is an added plus. The resort-style pool will offer towels, food and beverage service, as well the ability to make dinner reservations without ever having to leave your poolside seat.

Taylor Morrison has been very active in Wesley Chapel. In the last few months, the homebuilder has completed two new communities in Wesley Chapel — Woodside Trace, a 52-townhome community located on County Line Rd. approximately two miles west of Bruce B. Downs, and Chapel Trace, an 87-unit single-family-home community north of S.R. 54 on Boyette Rd. The builder also is preparing to build three additional new subdivisions within WaterGrass on Curley Rd.

With the new S.R. 56 extension to U.S. Hwy. 301 in Zephyrhills complete, Taylor Morrison already is planning on new developments in that corridor – it is the contract purchaser for land at the former Zephyr Egg site west of Morris Bridge Rd., and could begin construction next year.

“We expect to continue to be active,” Miller says. “Wesley Chapel is one of our key submarkets in our approach to Tampa. We have a nice mix of offerings in that area, and we see a lot of runway ahead of us in Wesley Chapel.”

For more information about Taylor Morrison’s new 55+ community, visit EsplanadeAtWiregrassRanch.com, where you can join the VIP Interest List, or  call (866) 495-6006.

County Agrees To Hire Tampa Fire Rescue For Unincorporated Area

The City of Tampa and Hillsborough County have resolved its dispute over usage of Tampa Fire Rescue Station No. 21 on Cross Creek Blvd. (Photo: John C. Cotey)

When roughly 5,000 residents in Pebble Creek, Live Oake, Cross Creek and other communities located in unincorporated Hillsborough County lost their City of Tampa fire rescue service in 2018, Hillsborough County turned to nearby Pasco County for service.

With a new mayor in office, they have now turned back to Tampa.

On September 18, the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) agreed by a 7-0 vote to finalize an agreement with the City of Tampa to restore its fire service to the area, which former Mayor Bob Buckhorn ended in 2017 after demanding the county pay roughly five times what it was already paying.

Under the new proposed agreement, the county will pay the city $600,000 a year for service from the four stations located in New Tampa.  It also gave a 90-day notice to Pasco County which, in lieu of the City of Tampa, has been providing service for the unincorporated area since 2018.

Hillsborough County commissioner
Ken Hagan

“This is great news for New Tampa,” said Hillsborough County commissioner Ken Hagan, who represents the New Tampa area in District 2.  “Restoring Tampa’s fire rescue service to unincorporated New Tampa was my No. 1 priority.  It was the first thing I met with (newly elected) Mayor Jane Castor about when she got elected.  I’m absolutely thrilled that we’ve reached an agreement in principle.”

District 6 Commissioner Pat Kemp agreed, and offered thanks to Mayor Castor for being open to renegotiating.

“This is the most sensible and safe solution to serve the residents there,” Kemp said.

The nearest Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Station is the University Area Station No.5 on E. 139th Ave., which is more than 10 miles from most of Pebble Creek.

So while the $600,000 is nearly three times what the county was paying in its previous agreement with the City of Tampa, “it is $900,000 less than what the City previously wanted, and it is far less than what it would cost to construct and operate a fire station in the area,” Hagan said.

Hagan said he recently spoke at a Homeowners Association meeting in Cross Creek, and fire rescue service was one of the first concerns raised.  He says he came to the BOCC with nine letters of support from HOAs in the unincorporated areas of New Tampa.

“The best-case scenario was to ultimately restore service, and unfortunately, that required a new Mayor,” Hagan said.

In 2017, Buckhorn said the City of Tampa would no longer provide fire rescue service to the unincorporated portion of New Tampa, which it had done since 1998 with some combination of Fire Stations No. 20 in Tampa Palms and Nos. 21(located across Cross Creek Blvd. from the Cross Creek community) and 22 on Cross Creek Blvd., In February, another station, No. 23, opened just off of County Line Rd. on Trout Creek Dr., essentially surrounding unincorporated New Tampa with fire rescue stations.

Without coverage from the city, Hillsborough turned to Pasco County for help. For $275,000 a year, Pasco — primarily Pasco County Fire Rescue Station No. 26, located in the nearby Meadow Pointe I community of Wesley Chapel — provided emergency services to unincorporated New Tampa.

“Pasco has done a good job, but the reality is the response times are longer,” Hagan said.  “A few calls have taken over 20 minutes to respond.  I’ve also heard horror stories from residents who have had to call 911 a second time or have taken matters into their own hands and driven loved ones to the ER themselves.  As a result, New Tampa has been begging the county to contract with Tampa.”

Pebble Creek residents created a Facebook page and online petition asking the County to build a fire station closer to them.

While Tampa’s closer fire rescue stations could still respond to emergencies if the Pasco Fire Rescue Trucks were occupied — due to a mutual aid agreement between the counties — all local calls in the unincoporated areas were diverted first to Pasco Fire Rescue.

A return to the old agreement, Hagan says, is simply more convenient, and safer, for area residents. 

“I can tell you, the community is absolutely delighted that Tampa Fire Rescue is once again going to be providing service to unincorporated New Tampa,” Hagan said.

“Fun” and “Fresh” Stuff Coming To New Tampa!

Good news for those bemoaning the lack of things to do with the kids in New Tampa, as well as the number of empty “big box” stores in New Tampa — an Urban Air Adventure Park is on the way to the Market Square at Tampa Palms, the shopping center anchored by BJ’s Wholesale Club on Commerce Palms Dr..

And it’s not alone.

While Urban Air Adventure Park will fill the former home of HH Gregg, Taza Market, an Indian supermarket and eatery, is expected to take over the old Staples location.

Urban Air Adventure is a Texas-based entertainment center franchise with locations all over the U.S.. The New Tampa location will be the company’s 10th in Florida, which includes centers in nearby Lakeland and Port Richey.

It has already announced on its website that it is coming to New Tampa, and according to plans filed with the City of Tampa, the facility will be 28,000 sq. ft. and include areas for a warrior course, spin/flip zone, slam dunk zone, family zone, wipe out area, adventure hub and private rooms for parties to go with a full service cafe.

The award-winning indoor activity center, which calls itself the “ultimate indoor playground for your entire family” and says it is more than just a trampoline park, typically offers high-flying activities, such as a Sky Rider Coaster, climbing walls and elevated ropes course, to name a few.

Taza Market, according to plans filed with the city, will be a 16,382-sq.-ft. Indian super market with fresh food made daily and a cafe-like area of roughly 1,700 sq. ft. with seating for 80.

Taza in Hindi translates to “fresh”.

Cypress Creek Town Center Area Still Rockin’

Main Event is under construction.

The S.R. 56 corridor just west of I-75 continues to be the hottest area in what we like to call Wesley Chapel.

Here’s a few projects picking up steam:

* On the north side of S.R. 56 between Bahama Breeze and the Hyatt Place Hotel & Conference Center, a La-Z-Boy furniture store has broken ground.

Headquartered in Monroe, MI, La-Z-Boy is best known for its recliners, although it offers a complete line of furniture.

The Wesley Chapel store will be 13,650 sq. ft., and will soon have company, as a 15,664-sq.-ft. parcel is being developed for retail/restaurant.

The nearest La-Z-Boy showroom is located on N. Dale Mabry Hwy., and there also are locations in New Port Richey, Brandon and Clearwater.

La-Z-Boy will be the fifth furniture store to open in roughly a 4-mile stretch on S.R. 56, joining Rooms To Go (intersection of S.R. 56 and BBD), Ashley, Haverty’s and the 70,000-sq.ft. El Dorado Furniture, which has not yet begun construction in Brightwork Crossing (next to the new Wawa, where 54, 56 and Wesley Chapel Blvd. meet).

 * Main Event, which will offer bowling, laser tag and a restaurant/bar, and the KISS-themed restaurant/bar Rock N’ Brews are both under construction on S.R. 56, east of the Tampa Premium Outlets.

Rock ‘N Brews received approval from county planners to begin construction on Aug. 30, while Main Event has been under construction since July.

* Also potentially sharing the same space with the two eateries will be Cigars International, which filed site plans on Sept. 5 with the county to build a 9,497-sq. ft. store according to permitting records.

Cigars International, according to its website, is “the King Kong of cigar companies.” It was established in 1996 in Bethlehem, PA, and deals in all things related to cigars. It has a large online presence, and a Wesley Chapel location would only be its fifth store/center, joining two others in Bethlehem, one in Hamburg, PA and one in The Colony, TX.

The store would be flanked by the two roads used to get to Main Event, Rock ‘N Brews and the Saltgrass Steakhouse, which is still only in the planning stages.

* Representatives from 7-Eleven were scheduled to meet with county planners on Sept. 16 to propose building a 3,500-sq.-ft. gas station/convenience store on the southeast corner of Overpass Rd. and Boyette Rd.

* Aldi has begun construction just a little north and west of Costco, and it will be one of two new stores in our area.

Plans have been filed with Hillsborough County to rezone the property of the old Ruby Tuesday off BBD in Highwoods Preserve to make room for a proposed Aldi in New Tampa. — JCC

Proposed Boundaries Offer Big Changes

The Seven Oaks community escaped being rezoned for different middle and high schools in 2016, but it doesn’t appear it will do so this time around.

Pasco County Schools staff is recommending that the entirety of Seven Oaks be rezoned to attend the new Cypress Creek Middle School, as well Cypress Creek High School, according to new school year 2020-21 maps posted on its website.

Wiregrass Ranch High will host a public workshop in its gymnasium on Monday, October 7, 5 p.m.-8 p.m., where the new maps will be displayed. District staff will be on hand to answer questions.

Almost every student living in Seven Oaks is currently zoned for John Long Middle School and Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH).

The rezoning is expected to help ease school overcrowding. JLM was at 110-percent capacity of its in 2018-19, but will have 400 fewer students with the new boundary, according to projections posted by the District staff, putting it at 80.5 percent capacity for 2020-21.

WRH was at 122.7-percent of its capacity in 2018-19, and will have roughly 540 fewer students with the new boundary, or 89.7 capacity.

Cypress Creek Middle and High schools also will have its boundaries extended north and draw students formerly zoned for Pasco Middle School and Pasco High in Dade City.

The new boundaries (above) also will be a change for students living in the Terrace Park, Timber Lake Estates and New River Ranchettes areas located just west of Morris Bridge Rd., between S.R.s 54 and south of 56, with roughly 100 or so students headed to Zephyrhills High School.

Quail Hollow Elementary’s boundary (above) is proposed to be extended north to the San Antonio area.

To view the new maps and the data, visit pasco.k12.fl.us/planning/page/rezoning. There also is an online form to file public comments.